For many web marketing campaigns, the use of mobile video ads to woo consumers on their smartphones and tablets can yield impressive results. You don't have to be a major multinational corporation with an ad budget in the millions to benefit from targeted video advertising geared towards mobile consumers. For advertisers and publishers alike, optimizing mobile video ads for maximum appeal is a critical consideration. To improve your odds of success, keep the following helpful hints in mind when crafting video ads. If you adhere to these guidelines, clicks and conversions are practically guaranteed.

Fine-Tune Video Ad Length

The amount of time that potential consumers are willing to spend paying attention to a video ad really depends on where they are and what they happen to be doing. As 25% of YouTube traffic is mobile, it's likely that a decent chunk of viewers don't have much time to spare. For certain campaigns, you can afford to go long on your ads and include a quick tutorial or an appropriate DIY tip. For others, you'll need to make an extremely quick pitch to viewers.

Go Viral with Shareable Clips

As the classic Volkswagen commercials of the 90s demonstrated, video ads can transcend commerce and become viral works of pop art. Video ads that lend themselves to sharing will inevitably net higher conversions than those that don't. The brass ring at the moment is achieving viral success on social sites like Google Plus and Facebook. Whether you're shooting for a direct sale or a brand awareness boost, nothing beats organic buzz for your videos when it comes to proliferating your message around the broader web.

Opt for a Narrow Sales Funnel

Casting too wide a net might not always be a complete disaster but it will severely diminish ROI in the end. Focus on a specific demographic that's likely to make a specific choice in the near term based on a video ad and figure out what kinds of ad content will appeal to them most. Some will respond positively to straightforward pitches while others will be swayed by quick FAQs or tutorials. Settling on a formula that works requires the kind of advanced web analytics that ad networks can provide.

Select a Reasonable Frequency

Video marketing can get fairly expensive if you let it run wild. If you've ever spent a lot of time on Hulu or YouTube, you've likely seen the same irrelevant ad multiple times with little or no effect. Even if you can solve the problem of accurately targeting video viewers, it's all too easy to go overboard and hurt your brand via overexposure. Make sure that your ads don't saturate a particular channel or niche to the point where you're spending money without achieving any noticeable gains.

Making Mobile Video Ads Pay Off

The most important part of mobile video advertising is getting your clips in front of the right audience. Choosing the right ad network makes all the difference in the world when it comes to maximizing the impact of your ads. While publishers like Facebook and Twittercurrently command a massive share of the mobile advertising pie, they're not always the appropriate solution. For local campaigns that address the needs of local businesses, a custom ad network approach will often lead to the best results.